


Red sky at night

by thatsformetoknow



Series: Haikyuu University Fics [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Canon Compliant, Coming Out, Dates, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Kissing, M/M, Making Out, Mario Kart, Tooth Rotting Fluff, baking together, canon follow on, friends before dating, playing volleyball, pretty much, trip to a wildlife center
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-20
Updated: 2016-12-21
Packaged: 2018-09-10 16:12:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8923759
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatsformetoknow/pseuds/thatsformetoknow
Summary: Akaashi hasn't seen Bokuto since he became a third year and Bokuto went to University, but a couple of visits to stay with Bokuto sparks something





	1. Chapter 1

The streets were rather busy for a Friday afternoon. Traffic was always bad around this time but the streets were unusually crowded which served as an inconvenience for Akaashi as he ended up bashing an innumerable amount of people in the side with his bag as well as himself a fair few times too.

The station was hardly any better, and he pulled out his phone as he got onto the train and managed to squeeze himself into a seat between two other people. He felt a smile tugging at his lips as he saw a text from Bokuto from seven minutes ago that he'd missed.

_From: Bokuto-san  
akaaashiiiiiii are you on the train yet?!_

_To: Bokuto-san  
I've just gotten on, shouldn't be too long now._

_From: Bokuto-san  
did you get a seat? did you remember everything? what do you want to do when you get here?_

_To: Bokuto-san_  
_I managed to get a seat, though it's rather small and yes, I've remembered everything. That is up to you, Bokuto-san, you are the host, after all._

They texted back and forth as the train stopped and the people slowly filtered out until it was just Akaashi and around eight other people and Akaashi stood up as they approached his stop.

Akaashi stepped off of the train and barely had time to take a step before arms were thrown around him, nearly knocking himself and an old lady over in the process.

'Hey, hey, hey, Akaashi!' Bokuto said his signature greeting loudly, helping to steady Akaashi as he pulled away.

'Hello Bokuto-san.' Akaashi greeted politely and protested softly as Bokuto took his bag from him.

'You're my guest, Akaashi! Let me be helpful! Oh! You're still in your school clothes, did you come straight from school? Did you carry this around with you all day? Did you have volleyball practice? How is everyone without me?' He asked quickly and Akaashi didn't quite know how he was going to keep up with him this weekend.

'I-'

'Wait no, tell me about all of that later.' He said with a sheepish expression, as if just having remembered his manners. 'How are you, Akaashi?'

'I am very well, thank you, Bokuto-san. Yourself?'

'I'm great!' He said with a grin, leading Akaashi down a narrow road without a pavement. 'Careful of cars on this road.' He said as the pavement thinned and Akaashi nodded.

'How is University going?' Akaashi asked, and watched as a grin spread across Bokuto's face.

'It's great! It's amazing playing with such a good team.' He laughed, almost sadly. 'But I do miss ours. And you. Will you toss for me tomorrow, Akaashi? Will you?'

Akaashi laughed quietly. 'If you would like me to, Bokuto-san.'

'Of course I would! I like the setter on my new team, but he doesn't know me like you do. He's still figuring out how to toss for me best.'

Akaashi nodded. 'Well, it's only been a few weeks, I have had two years of experience of tossing for you.'

They quickly approached an apartment block and Akaashi was surprised that Bokuto wasn't staying on campus, and realised that he'd never properly asked him where he was living now.

'How are you able to afford this place?' Akaashi asked as they went up and Bokuto unlocked his front door; as far as he was aware, Bokuto didn't have a job of any sorts.

'Oh, my parents are paying for it since I got the scholarship and all…' He said, seeming a little embarrassed. He took Akaashi's bag through to his bedroom where he put it down on the futon that he'd set up for Akaashi.

'I'll give you the grand tour of 'Casa De Bokuto'!' He said proudly and Akaashi raised an eyebrow.

'How do you even know Spanish?'

'Kuroo taught it to me.'

'Oh, because that explains so much.' He laughed lightly.

'Kuroo's really smart! He's majoring in chemistry with Oikawa and everything!'

'Have they blown their apartment up yet? Last I heard from Kozume-san was that they were rooming together.'

Bokuto laughed. 'No, they're always conducting experiments of sorts in their kitchen though. I refuse to eat at theirs now, if I do, it's because we ordered a take out.'

'I think that's probably a good decision.'

Bokuto lead Akaashi into the kitchen. 'My kitchen on the other hand, is very clean and safe! And I have recently delved into the culinary life and I shall make you a delicious dish tonight.' He bowed as he spoke and Akaashi laughed.

'I look forward to it.'

They walked into the bathroom, which was rather on the small side but it looked nice enough and then into the living room in which there was one sofa which looked incredibly comfortable as well as a television and a Wii set up by it.

'Is this an acceptable living environment for Prince Keiji?' Bokuto asked with a grin.

'I didn't know you knew such long words, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi teased and Bokuto pouted.

'I'm in University, Akaashi!' He whined.

'Yeah, for volleyball.'

'Akaaaaaashi.' He whined.

'Sorry, Bokuto-san, I know you're not stupid.'

And just like that the grin spread back across Bokuto's face.

'You should go and change out of your school clothes and I'll start cooking.' Bokuto suggested and Akaashi nodded, padding to Bokuto's bedroom and getting a change of clothes out of his bag.

'So how is everyone back at Fukurodani?' He heard Bokuto call out and he finished buttoning up his shirt before walking back to the kitchen.

'They're good, we all miss you of course.' He said and watched as Bokuto's face lit up. 'I was worried about a couple of the first years settling in but they seem to be doing okay.'

'You see, this is why I offered you the captains position.'

Akaashi shook his head. 'I'm not really cut out to be a captain, Bokuto-san, I'm nowhere near as good as a captain as you were.'

Bokuto frowned. 'I'm not sure I believe that. I miss you all loads too. My new team mates are really nice though, you'll probably meet a couple of them tomorrow when you come to toss for me!'

Akaashi nodded. 'So what are you making me, oh great chef?'

'It's a surprise!'

'Is it macaroni?' He asked with a raised eyebrow.

'Akaaaashi, how did you know?'

'I just saw you pour the pasta into the pot.'

Bokuto huffed. 'Well, you'll still be surprised by how good it tastes!'

'I'm sure I will be.' Akaashi agreed.

After they had eaten, Akaashi had found a Monopoly game on Bokuto's bookshelf and Bokuto had been eager to play it and so Akaashi had agreed and set it up.

Bokuto seemed to be finding it challenging to sit still for the amount of time that they had been playing and it was around one in the morning when Akaashi had hotels on Mayfair and Park Lane and Bokuto finally fell asleep on the board, knocking his money pile askew but thankfully not moving their playing pieces.

'Bokuto-san?' Akaashi said softly, shaking the older boy gently.

'Eh?' He mumbled sleepily sitting up and rubbing his face.

'You fell asleep, we should probably go to bed.'

Bokuto nodded and blinked slowly, and stood up, stumbling towards his bedroom and Akaashi followed him, closing the curtains and laying down on the futon next to Bokuto's bed.

*** 

Akaashi was awoken by a weight suddenly falling onto him and as he opened his eyes, he saw Bokuto excitedly looking at him from where he had rolled off of his bed and onto the futon, hair no longer styled from the night's sleep and wildly sticking up and falling everywhere and Akaashi could have laughed at how childlike he looked.

After getting up and Bokuto making them both a coffee each, they went to sit back at the sofa, wrapped up in jumpers and blankets as although it was pretty clear that Akaashi would win at this point, Bokuto had insisted that they continue the game until the end.

It didn't take long for Bokuto to go bankrupt and Akaashi declared victory as Bokuto whined about his loss.

He didn't stay disheartened for long, however, as he eagerly suggested they get breakfast out at a little café he knew that was close to his university before they went there to play volleyball.

They got dressed into their volleyball clothes, throwing a tracksuit over the top and they walked to the café. It wasn't far and they soon arrived, Bokuto happily greeting the barista that was serving food and drinks and he ushered Akaashi to sit at a table and handed him a breakfast menu.

Bokuto ordered waffles for breakfast and asked for extra syrup, while Akaashi ordered scrambled eggs and they ate quickly, eager to practice volleyball together again and Bokuto chattered away.

It was a little after eleven by the time they arrived at the university and Akaashi had to get a special visitor badge from the front reception to say he was allowed to be there and they quickly made their way to the gym, putting their tracksuits in the changing rooms and Bokuto quickly retrieved a ball.

He threw it up into the air and started to run as it approached Akaashi, jumping and spiking it hard over the net as Akaashi tossed it for him.

'I've missed this.' Akaashi said softly, thinking that Bokuto wouldn't hear him but the next thing he knew, Bokuto was fiercely hugging him and laughing.

'I've missed this too, Akaashi. Toss for me again!'

The squeaking of trainers on the gym floor and smack of the ball hitting the ground as the gym door swung open loudly and two boys walked in.

'Is this the famed Akaashi then?' One of them asked with a smirk, giving Akaashi a once over. 'You were right; he is pretty.' He said, picking up the ball and spinning it in his hands.

Akaashi felt his cheeks heating against his will and he couldn't help but feel intimidated by the boys from Bokuto's university volleyball team.

'Shut up, Inihara, he's only a high-schooler, give him a break.' One of the other boys said with a roll of his eyes as he lightly slapped Inihara across the head.

'Sorry, Captain.' He said, looking away.

'Akaashi, right?' The captain said, turning to Akaashi and offering him a warm smile.

Akaashi nodded. 'I'm Mikora, the captain.'

'It's good to meet you, Mikora-san.' Akaashi said with a slight bow and Inihara laughed.

'He's a polite one this one, eh? How did you end up being friends with Bokuto here?' He laughed.

'Ignore him.' Mikora said to Bokuto who was looking a little put out. 'You're Bokuto's setter then. This idiot here is our teams official setter, I'm sure he could learn a thing or two from you. After all, you've known Bokuto far longer than we have.' He harshly elbowed Inihara in the side.

'I'd be grateful, Akaashi-san.' He said quickly, rubbing his side and glaring at Mikora.

Akaashi nodded and began to explain about Bokuto's infamous 'emo mode' as Fukurodani liked to call it and how they used to deal with it, resulting in a lot of pouting from Bokuto and laughter from Inihara and Mikora.

It was well after lunch time by the time Akaashi and Bokuto left, buying a sandwich each from a supermarket and going to sit on a bench in the park near to Bokuto's house upon Bokuto's request that he show Akaashi all around town.

'What are you thinking of majoring in next year then?' Bokuto asked as they ate, watching ducks flapping around and swimming in the pond as two children threw bread out to them.

'English, maybe.' He mused. 'I quite like it and I don't find it incredibly difficult.'

Bokuto looked at him in awe. 'You really are amazing, Akaashi!' He gushed. 'I don't even know a word of English!'

Akaashi looked away, feeling his cheeks heat at his words.

'We should go to England together! I've always wanted to go and I don't know how I'd be able to manage by myself when I can't speak it or read it!'

Akaashi smiled softly at him. 'I would like that, Bokuto-san.'

'You should come to my university too. Then we could play volleyball together again.'

Akaashi hummed softly. 'But your university isn't like Kuroo and Oikawa's or the others. If I was to be on the volleyball team I would have to get a scholarship and that's not the field I'd like to pursue.'

'You don't need to be on the team, Akaashi. I'm sure they'd let you help me practice sometimes. You could totally come here for English, it's a really good university.' He said, eyes wide and Akaashi found a small smile on his face. 'We could even live together.' He finished quietly.

'I'll look into it, Bokuto-san.' He said and a smile lit up Bokuto's face.

They quickly finished their lunch after the conversation drew to a close and Akaashi offered to make dinner for them this evening, and they went to the supermarket to buy some ingredients before going home.

'You're telling me you've never played Mario Kart?' Bokuto wailed, pointing to the wii that was set up by his television.

Akaashi shook his head. 'I've never really been one for playing video games.'

'You can't not have played Mario Kart though.' Bokuto seemed greatly distressed after learning this. 'We have to fix this right now.'

Bokuto chose to play as Donkey Kong while Akaashi chose to play as Yoshi and once Bokuto was finished gushing about how cute that was and Akaashi had finished rolling his eyes, they started a race.

Akaashi wasn't entirely sure how to work the controller, reversing by accident a fair few times and falling over the edge countless times, but by the fourth race, Akaashi was achieving a decent result.

'I can't believe this is your fourth race and you came fifth.' Bokuto whined and set up the next Grand Prix.

Akaashi laughed softly. 'Did you want to do these next races by yourself and I'll make a start on dinner? We can play some more when it's cooking.'

Bokuto eagerly nodded and Akaashi went into the kitchen.

He prepared the chicken as he had watched his mother do hundreds of times and he called out to Bokuto for a rolling pin as he could not find one.

Bokuto handed it to him and curiously watched to see what he needed a rolling pin for, and watched in horror as Akaashi covered up the seasoned chicken fillets with baking paper and began to viciously whack the chicken with the end of the rolling pin.

'AKAASHI, OH MY GOD IT'S ALREADY DEAD, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?' He screeched and Akaashi turned to him and shrugged.

'It's what my mother does when she makes chicken.'

They played Mario Kart again as it cooked and ate on the sofa as they watched a movie, Bokuto swearing that Akaashi was some sort of cooking genius.

The next thing Akaashi was aware of was warmth as he blearily opened his eyes and found himself in Bokuto's arms as Bokuto carried him to bed.

'I didn't mean to wake you.' He said gently and Akaashi smiled.

'It's okay, Bokuto-san.' He replied and Bokuto didn't put him down even though Akaashi was now awake.

'You're going home tomorrow.' He said softly, sitting Akaashi down on the edge of his bed and putting his pyjamas on, averting his eyes as Akaashi changed into his.

'Yes, I am.' Akaashi replied after the few minutes of silence.

'I'll miss you. I missed you.' Bokuto said softly, laying down on his bed and tugged on Akaashi's arm until he laid down next to him. 'Can I hold you for a bit?' He asked gently and Akaashi nodded, settling himself into Bokuto's arms.

Bokuto was warm and he held him gently, gentler than Akaashi would have thought possible of such a clumsy man.

'I miss spiking your tosses.'

'I miss tossing for you, Bokuto-san.'

'I miss seeing you every day.' He said and let out a breath.

'You do?' Akaashi asked, having figured that Bokuto would have been too wrapped up in his new life at university to miss Akaashi all that much. It wasn't as though they were close friends outside of the club anyway, that's all they were; team mates.

'Yeah. I miss you more than I thought I would.'

'Me too.' Akaashi replied softly, looking up at Bokuto and instinctively his lips pressed ever so lightly to Bokuto's cheek and he laid back down in Bokuto's arms, figuring a few more minutes before he went to bed wouldn't hurt.

*** 

When Akaashi woke up, Bokuto was still asleep and he shifted slightly in his arms, turning to look at him, and he wondered briefly if Bokuto had felt him kiss him last night and shook his head with a small smile, wondering what on earth had possessed him to do that.

Bokuto looked so peaceful and quiet while he slept, a huge contrast to how he usually was, though strangely not last night. He thought of how Bokuto had lifted him into his arms and carried him to bed in an attempt not to wake him and he smiled gently.

Bokuto's hair wasn't entirely still styled, though it didn't seem as though either of them had moved much during the night and Akaashi ran his hand through it, finding it surprisingly soft (if a little stiff) despite all the product he used in it.

Bokuto's nose wrinkled up a little as he yawned and he blinked owlishly at Akaashi, sleep clouding his eyes and Akaashi averted his gaze, realising with a jolt that he had been staring.

'Hey, hey, hey, Akaashi.' He said brightly, sitting up, and Akaashi shivered in the cold as the covers were ripped from him 'Oops, sorry.' He said sheepishly, standing up and getting a large warm jumper out of his drawer and tossing it lazily in Akaashi's direction. 'Here, put this on.'

'Thank you, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi said, putting the jumper on and laughing at himself as he stood up and looked in the mirror, seeing that the jumper was practically swallowing him.

They went into the kitchen and had some toast, and Bokuto's phone rang. Akaashi went to get dressed while Bokuto was on the phone and judging by the tone of his voice and excitement he figured it was probably Kuroo.

'Akaashi? Oh good, you're dressed.' He said, coming into his bedroom. 'We've got to swing by Kuroo's real quick, he left his notebook here last week and he and Oikawa are trying to do an experiment and the formula is in it so they're improvising.'

'Is that a good idea?' Akaashi asked, frowning.

'You see why I don't eat there.' He quickly pulled his clothes on and after grabbing up the notebook off of his bedroom floor they were out of the door and on their way to Kuroo and Oikawa's apartment.

The door was left unlocked and so they pushed it open, hearing rushed voices and they walked through into the kitchen and the relief on Oikawa's face was instant.

'Hey bro!' Kuroo said happily, throwing an arm around Bokuto's shoulders and taking the notebook from him as the flame on the Bunsen burner on their kitchen counter increased at least twice in size.

'Shit, shit, shit.' Oikawa said, frantically flipping through the notebook and slamming it down onto the counter. 'We put too much in, Tetsu-chan, I told you to wait for the book! We need more of this!' He said, unscrewing a jar and tossing a substance into the vile.

'No you didn't, Trashykawa.'

'Why did I ever leave you and Iwa-chan alone together?' He whined and turned the flame down a little, stirring the mixture.

'How did you get all of this, bro?' Bokuto asked in awe.

'We 'borrowed' it from uni.' He said with a smirk.

Akaashi was backing away slowly, watching Bokuto bound around like an excited puppy when he heard the front door sound.

Kenma took one step into the kitchen before turning on his heels and walking back out.

'Grab Kenma for me, would ya, Akaashi?' Kuroo said loudly as he turned the flame back up until it was burning blue.

Kenma stopped, obviously not wanting to be 'grabbed' by Akaashi and turned to look at Kuroo, eyebrows raised in questioning.

'I'll be finished in a second, go set up in the living room and I'll be out.'

'Hey, hey, hey, Kenma, Akaashi will play Mario Kart with you while you wait!' He exclaimed, shoving Akaashi towards Kenma. 'You could exchange setter techniques too!'

Kenma and Akaashi went into the living room and he quietly explained to Akaashi after receiving a questioning look that he comes over most Sundays to play video games with Kuroo, now that they don't see each other all that much.

They both rushed into the kitchen upon hearing a piercing scream and they opened the door to see Oikawa with his eyes screwed shut and the scream on his lips, with Bokuto and Kuroo rushing around him flinging water over him.

'Why are we friends with these children?' Akaashi said softly as they retreated back to the living room and Kenma set up Mario Kart.

'I don't know, you'd never believe they're in university.'

'More like primary school.' Akaashi agreed.

They played a round of Mario Kart, Akaashi unable to beat Kenma, who came first each time before the other three came into the room.

Oikawa rushed into his bedroom and so the four of them sat on the sofa and played Mario Kart, Kuroo yelling at Oikawa when he rushed back and forth a few times in front of the television and he whined back that he had to grab a few things he needed to meet 'Iwa-chan'.

The pizza they'd ordered arrived and they rose to the challenge of racing and eating at the same time, and Akaashi kept throwing little glances towards the clock.

'Bokuto-san.' He said softly, as they finished a Grand Prix (Kenma won, obviously). 'It's almost eight.'

'Ah… You're right.' He said, his face suddenly downcast. 'We should get going, Akaashi's got a train to catch.' He said, his voice unusually soft and so he and Bokuto bid Kenma and Kuroo goodbye and went back to Bokuto's apartment.

Bokuto helped Akaashi collect up his things and soon enough they were at the station, Akaashi with bag in hand and the train was swiftly approaching.

'Thank you for having me, Bokuto-san. I had a good time.'

'Me too! You'll come and visit again soon, won't you? Your parents will let you come in the holidays, won't they?'

'I'm sure they'll let me have a few days spare.' Akaashi smiled softly and the train pulled in, doors opening and Bokuto hugged Akaashi. He lingered close to him as the other people boarded the train and kissed his cheek gently as Akaashi pulled away and turned towards the train.

Akaashi could feel the flush creeping up his neck but he turned anyway as he stepped onto the train and gave Bokuto a quick wave, watching as he eagerly waved back kept waving as Akaashi found a seat by the window and the train pulled out of the station.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im so excited for you guys to read this fic ^~^ I wrote all 12k in my free periods at school (since I have no laptop) so it's taken me a good few weeks and I'm so proud of it
> 
> Comments are greatly appreciated!! So so much!!


	2. Chapter 2

This time around when he stepped off of the train, Akaashi felt a lot calmer for his visit, heart beat a little faster than usual as he anticipated seeing his friend again after the weeks that had passed of texting and the occasional skype call before bed.

'Akaashiiiii!' He heard a shout and turns around just in time for Bokuto to practically leap on him and then apologetically brush him down and bashfully grin at him, taking his suitcase handle from him.

'It's good to see you again, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi smiled at him.

'I missed you!' He said happily, taking Akaashi's arm and leading him down a different road than the ones they had walked down last time.

'I missed you too.' Akaashi admitted and Bokuto beamed.

'We have to swing by Kuroo's place real quick. I left my entire school bag there last night.'

Akaashi rolled his eyes with a soft smile. 'You both really need to get better at taking care of your things.' He scolded and Bokuto pouted.

'I can't help it! We're always leaving things at each other's houses.

It didn't take them too long to arrive, sharing a glance as they walked up the hallway to Kuroo and Oikawa's apartment and heard raised voices from the inside.

Bokuto hesitated, but unlocked the door, pushing it open and walking a few steps in, grateful that Kuroo had placed his bag by the front door and he flinched when he heard Oikawa shout.

'How could you not tell me?' He said, his voice loud and strained.

'It just didn't come up.' Bokuto and Akaashi were surprised to hear Iwaizumi's voice loudly talking back at Oikawa, sounding frustrated.

'It didn't come up? Maybe because you never fucking text me! Maybe because we never fucking see each other but I still would have told you! I would have made it come up!' He shouted, sounding close to tears.

'Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, Shittykawa, but we can't all be like you.' Iwaizumi snarled back and Bokuto backed quickly out of the apartment, closing the door and grabbing both Akaashi's hand and suitcase, rushing down the hallway.

They saw Kuroo walking up the stairs and he stopped at the look on both of their faces.

'What is it?' He asked, worried by Bokuto's lack of enthusiastic greeting.

'Oikawa-san and Iwaizumi-san are arguing.' Akaashi supplied.

'Badly.' Bokuto added and Kuroo nodded.

'Thanks.' He said, walking quickly towards his apartment.

'I never thought I'd hear Oikawa and Iwaizumi shouting at each other like that.' Bokuto said with a frown as they walked back in the direction of Bokuto's apartment block.

'From the times that I've seen them together, they always seemed to be in sync with each other.'

Bokuto laughed softly, the sound sounding somehow wrong (and yet welcome) in the slightly tense atmosphere. 'Only you would say something like that, Akaashi.'

He unlocked his door and they went inside, Akaashi relaxed almost immediately, putting the argument that they'd witnessed to the back of his mind and taking his suitcase from Bokuto, taking it into his bedroom where Bokuto had set up the futon again for him next to his bed.

He went into the living room, and Bokuto was sitting on the sofa, frowning a little and Akaashi sat down next to him.

'What's wrong?' He asked softly, making Bokuto start and he turned to look at Akaashi.

'I think you're my best friend, Akaashi.' He replied softly, looking worried and Akaashi's eyes widened a little.

'What about Kuroo-san?'

Bokuto shook his head. 'I think you're my best friend, Akaashi.' He repeated and Akaashi smiled a little.

'Me too.' He replied and Bokuto smiled despite himself. 'Then what's wrong?' He asked as the frown set back into Bokuto's features.

'Do you think we'll ever fight like that?' He asked, not meeting Akaashi's eyes and Akaashi laid a hand on his arm.

'I don't imagine so, Bokuto-san. I think you will always be excited to tell me everything and I don't intend to keep things from you.'

He looked up at Akaashi, eyes wide and he looked so vulnerable.

Akaashi bit his lip and put an arm around Bokuto, and Bokuto leaned into the embrace, nestling his head in the crook of Akaashi's neck, despite how he was hunching himself over to do it and Akaashi ignored how Bokuto's hair stuck into his jaw.

'Do you think we'll be friends forever, Akaashi?' Bokuto mumbled against Akaashi's skin and Akaashi stroked his thumb over Bokuto's back softly, remembering his mother doing it for him when he was younger and it seemed to soothe him.

'Why are you saying all of this?'

'This is only the second time we've seen each other since school ended. People don't stay friends with the people they knew in high school with forever, everybody knows that. I don't want to lose you.'

'You won't.'

'You promise?'

Akaashi wet his lip. 'I promise.'

Bokuto shifted to pick up the television remote and he flicked it on, laying back so that he was pressed up against Akaashi, but watching the television as he flicked through the channels.

Akaashi threaded his fingers through Bokuto's hair, loosening it from its usual styling until it was soft and he could move his fingers freely through it.

'I was thinking we should go out to dinner.' Bokuto said with a yawn. 'But you're probably really tired from travelling so we should just order a take out and go tomorrow instead.'

'That sounds nice, Bokuto-san, I would like that.' Akaashi said, trying desperately to ignore the pins and needles he had gotten from his arm being numb for so long due to Bokuto laying practically on his chest and half on his arm.

'I wish you could stay longer.' He said, twisting around to look up at Akaashi, who immediately averted his gaze so it seemed as though he had been watching the television the entire time.

He looked down at Bokuto, stilling his hand in his hair.

'I only just got here.' He smiled. 'We still have four days.'

Bokuto nodded. 'We should make something together.'

'Like what?'

'Like a gingerbread house.'

'A gingerbread house?' Akaashi asked flatly.

'Come on, Akaashi! It's the Christmas holidays and it'll be fun! We can make it and decorate it with loads of different things and it'll be so cool!'

Akaashi laughed gently at the hopeful look on Bokuto's face. 'Alright, Bokuto-san. We can make a gingerbread house.'

Bokuto beamed at him and turned his gaze back to the television.

*** 

The morning was quiet and slow, Bokuto made them breakfast while Akaashi showered and Akaashi tidied Bokuto's bedroom a little, figuring that now he lived on his own there was no one to tell him to do it. So he picked up clothes that were lying around on the floor and put them in the wash and stacked up his text books and put his papers into an organised pile before going out into the kitchen.

He found Bokuto hunched over a piece of paper and he was writing things down on it and so Akaashi leaned over his shoulder to read it.

_THINGS WE NEED TO MAKE A GINGERBREAD HOUSE_

Was the first thing at the top written in Bokuto's scrawl and then a list of ingredients below it.

Bokuto looked up and smiled at Akaashi as he sat down across the table and Bokuto pushed a plate of buttered toast towards him.

'Thank you, Bokuto-san.' He said softly with a smile as he took a bite.

'After you've finished can we go to the store to get the ingredients?' He asked excitedly.

Akaashi nodded. 'Alright.'

Bokuto finished writing the list and went to get dressed, still having been in his dressing gown from his earlier shower.

He emerged a little while later, dressed and hair styled and he grabbed his wallet off of the kitchen counter and Akaashi's hand.

It didn't take long to get to the store, it did however, take Akaashi a long time to convince Bokuto that they didn't need half of the decorations that he'd put in the basket, and they wouldn't have any room for them when decorating anyway.

They'd spent a hefty amount on decorations and Akaashi was a little hesitant, but Bokuto assured him that it was fine.

Bokuto allowed Akaashi to carry a light bag with a few decorations in while he carried the bag that contained the bags of flour and sugar etc.

Once they arrived back home, they went about weighing out the ingredients and getting out an assortment of bowels and things while Akaashi printed out the template.

It didn't go as badly as Akaashi had thought it might have, though they forgot to put the orange juice in so had to go back a step or two and destroy the balls of dough they'd made to add it (that explained why it wasn't coming together all that easily though) and they'd soon rolled it out and cut out the different shapes for the sides, putting them into baking trays and putting them on the side.

'Look, Akaashi!' Bokuto said eagerly, holding up a tiny ball of dough on top of another tiny ball of dough with four rolled up tiny pieces coming out of the sides.

Akaashi's brows furrowed in confusion.

'It's you!' He said excitedly, putting the dough into the tray next to the roof and he went about making another one.

Akaashi stopped himself from laughing at the little dough man, because it was sweet, really, even if it looked nothing like a human at all.

It was soon in the oven and cooking, and Bokuto stood in the middle of the kitchen, a look of concentration on his face while Akaashi attempted to start washing up.

'We should plan our trip to England together!' Bokuto announced suddenly, making Akaashi jump and he dropped a bowl back into the soapy water but was relieved to find that it didn't break.

'Our what?'

'You know! You said you were going to take English at university. So once you're done with school we should go to England together. You said we could go.'

Akaashi smiled. 'Okay, Bokuto-san, let's go to England together.' He said, not sure of whether he would ever be allowed, or where they would get the money, but humouring him anyway.

'I got this book.' He said excitedly, going to his bookshelf and getting a book about England on it with a photograph of a red double decker bus and Big Ben on the front cover.

Akaashi opened it and flicked through the pages.

'We should go for two weeks. That way we can experience everything! We should definitely go to London and see the clock and ride on the busses and use their weird money and swim in the river-'

'I don't think you're allowed to swim in the Thames, Bokuto-san.'

He pouted. 'Then we'll find a river to swim in! And we should go to Scotland! They have their funny accents, even more funny than the English people and we should-'

Akaashi couldn't help the soft smile on his face as he listened to Bokuto animatedly talk and scribble things down on paper until the page was full.

The timer beeped suddenly and Bokuto shot up like a rocket and was clumsily shoving his hands into oven gloves as he opened the oven door.

'This one is a little bit burned.' He said, his face falling.

'It's okay, we can cover that with decorations.' Akaashi assured him.

They mixed thick icing together while the gingerbread cooled and then managed to stick it together, managing to get it to stay upright and together.

'I can't believe it worked.' Akaashi said softly.

'The roof doesn't fit though!' Bokuto cried out, pointing to the place where the roof should have met at the top but instead, there was a gap of around an inch.

'We can use the chocolates we bought?' Akaashi suggested and Bokuto eagerly went to the bag of decorations. 'We have to let it set over night though.' Akaashi reminded him and Bokuto pouted.

'I can't wait that long!'

'Yes you can, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi smiled and Bokuto huffed.

'I'm taking you out to dinner!' He said and Akaashi glanced at the clock; surprised at how long making the gingerbread house had taken them and that it was almost seven.

'Okay, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi said and they both went to Bokuto's bedroom to change out of their clothes, flour dusted over them.

They walked there, and Bokuto grabbed Akaashi's hand, biting his lip and lead him to the restaurant, telling them that he had a reservation and Akaashi wondered when Bokuto had made that.

The restaurant looked lovely, they were at a small table in a secluded area with fairy lights decorating and gently lighting the room, a couple of hanging plants and soft gentle music playing.

The waiter came to light the candles at the table and gave them the menus.

Bokuto took a while to decide (as he always did), deciding he wanted a bit of everything and in the end he got Akaashi to choose for him.

The food was good and it was a few hours before they left, the air cool as they walked back, hand in hand and Akaashi leant over to place a light kiss on Bokuto's cheek as they walked.

'Thank you for tonight.' He said softly. 'I had fun.'

Akaashi smiled gently at the light blush that covered Bokuto's cheeks. 'I'm glad.' He replied, and Akaashi squeezed his hand softly. 'I had fun too.'

*** 

Akaashi listened to the steady flow of the shower as he opened the cupboard and got the box of cereal out, pouring them into the bowls.

He went to the fridge to get the milk and stopped dead in his tracks, looking at the fridge, a slight frown on his features.

'What?' He mumbled to himself, carefully moving the fridge magnet and taking a photo off of the fridge and briefly wondered how he hadn't noticed this yesterday when they had been baking.

He went back to the kitchen table and sat down, the small photo in his hands.

It was a photo of him and Bokuto. The picture itself was only a few inches tall and Akaashi couldn't really see many details due to it having been so dark when the photo was taken, but he could clearly see himself, asleep on Bokuto's chest.

His face was pressed against Bokuto's shirt and his eyes were closed as his arm draped over Bokuto's chest and Bokuto's other arm was wrapped around him.

He figured that Bokuto must have taken this back last time he visited when he'd fallen asleep during that movie. He could feel the blush creeping up his neck at the thought.

He was suddenly aware of the lack of noise from the shower and Bokuto popping his head around the kitchen door, towel wrapped around his waist and one draped around his shoulders.

Akaashi swallowed. 'Bokuto-san, what is this?' He asked, lifting the picture for Bokuto to see.

Bokuto smiled. 'That's my favourite picture of us, Akaashi!'

'Favourite as in you have more?' Akaashi asked, biting his lip and was relieved when Bokuto shook his head.

'That's why it's my favourite.'

'We have to take a better one then, you can barely see anything the lighting is so dark.'

'I didn't want to wake you.'

Akaashi got the milk out of the fridge and they ate in a comfortable silence.

Once Akaashi and Bokuto had both dried and dressed, they went into the living room and rested Bokuto's phone on the mantelpiece and set it to reverse camera, putting it on a timer to take a series of four pictures, each three seconds apart with some app he'd downloaded earlier.

Akaashi faced the camera as Bokuto set the timer going, Bokuto stood close to him and rested their heads together, smiling widely as the shutter went off.

Akaashi then felt Bokuto's lips on his cheek and his eyes widened a little as the shutter went off and he turned to look at Bokuto, his lips parted and eyes wide, thoughts racing.

Akaashi took the slight lapels that Bokuto's shirt had in his fists and brought their lips together. Their lips moved against each other's and Akaashi pulled away, only slightly so that he could still feel Bokuto's laboured breath on his lips and he looked at him.

Akaashi bit his lip, eyes wide with apprehension until Bokuto's hand brushed his hair behind his ear gently and settled on his jaw, tenderly stroking his face and Akaashi relaxed, shoulders un-tensing and he let his gaze flit to Bokuto's lips before looking back at his eyes which were staring back at him.

He realised that Bokuto was waiting, that he could see the worry on Akaashi's face and he was waiting for the okay, so Akaashi rested his forehead against Bokuto's and let his eyes fall closed, feeling their noses brush as he pressed their lips together again.

Akaashi wasn't sure how long it was before he pulled away this time, but he knew that he was flushed pink and breathless when he did, and that Bokuto was exactly the same and looked absolutely stunning.

'Do you want to finish decorating the gingerbread house?' Akaashi asked softly, and Bokuto nodded.

Akaashi let their lips brush together lightly once more before he pulled away and went into the kitchen, picking up the bag of ingredients and laughing gently as Bokuto eagerly bounded up to him and started to empty them onto the side.

They first put the chocolates on the roof in the hopes of bridging the gap they had somehow made and Akaashi was sticking white chocolate buttons onto the roof when Bokuto put three little things in front of the house.

'Bokuto-san.' Akaashi said flatly, looking at them. 'What is that?'

Bokuto excitedly pointed to the two little gingerbread 'people' now with faces and one decorated with black icing for hair and the other decorated with black and silver icing.

'It's us!' He exclaimed.

'And that?' He asked doubtfully, looking at the third thing which didn't seem to be a person.

'That's our dog! Because this is our house!'

Akaashi laughed lightly. 'Of course.' He said matter-of-factly.

*** 

Akaashi was in Bokuto's bedroom, collecting up his things and putting them back into his suitcase, due to leave that evening and he could hear Bokuto laughing from the other room. He sat down on Bokuto's bed and let out a breath; he didn't want to leave, he realised. He liked it here with Bokuto.

They hadn't spoken about their kiss (kisses) yesterday and Akaashi was wondering what this meant for them.

He went into the living room and watched Bokuto laughing at his phone and he thought to himself that maybe for now he was okay with not knowing.

'Akaashi! Look at this!' He exclaimed, as Akaashi sat down on the sofa next to him.

He had the camera on and it was flipped inwards and then suddenly dog ears and mouth appeared over Bokuto's face.

'What is that?' Akaashi asked.

'It's Snapchat; Kuroo told me to get it!' He said happily and then capturing Akaashi on the screen too, white and black spotted dog ears and mouth were added to his face also.

Bokuto took the picture and Akaashi blinked in surprise.

'Look at us! We're cute little puppies!' He said with a laugh and swiped the screen to get a different filter up.

Akaashi kissed Bokuto's cheek and attempted to get up but Bokuto pulled him back.

'Where are you going?' He asked softly and Akaashi smiled gently.

'I was going to finish up packing.'

'Stay with me forever.' He said, wrapping his arms around him and kissing him on the head.

'I would if I could, Bokuto-san.'

'Would you really?' He asked, eyes wide and hopeful.

Akaashi nodded. 'I would.'

'You have to promise you'll come and visit again soon.'

'I promise.'

'And you have to Skype me every day!'

'Every day?'

'At least three times a week!'

'Of course.'

'And text me every day!'

'I promise.' Akaashi agreed, but Bokuto didn't let go of him.

He kissed him gently, and all thoughts of getting away to pack up his things left his head the moment their lips touched.

Akaashi's hands were in Bokuto's hair, and Bokuto didn't object to Akaashi gently tugging it out of its style so that it hung loosely and he pulled Akaashi closer, pulling away momentarily to look at him.

'Have I told you before that you're really very beautiful, Akaashi?' Bokuto asked softly and Akaashi flushed, shaking his head. 'You're really very beautiful, Akaashi.' Bokuto rectified and Akaashi buried his face in Bokuto's neck in embarrassment, and Bokuto leant back against the sofa, his arm around Akaashi.

Akaashi sat up when he heard the shutter of Bokuto's phone go off, signalling that he was taking a photo and he looked accusingly at the phone as Bokuto saved the picture and Snapchatted it to Kuroo.

'Bokuto-san!' Akaashi scolded, though he was smiling.

'I couldn't help it.' Bokuto said with a grin. 'You're just too cute.'

Akaashi huffed. 'I am not cute.'

'Are too.' Bokuto said, kissing his nose and Akaashi spluttered in indignance.

'Are not.'

'Ha!' Bokuto said, showing Akaashi his phone screen, which showed a picture of Kuroo and the caption read 'cute :p'.

'I really do have to finish packing, you know.' He said and Bokuto pouted.

'Come back for cuddles after you're done?' He asked hopefully and Akaashi couldn't deny him.

'Alright, Bokuto-san.'

Akaashi went back into Bokuto's bedroom and started to fold his clothes when he heard the tell-tale sound of the shutter again.

'Bokuto-san!' Akaashi said with a slight glare.

'Sorry, Akaashi.' He grinned, signifying that he wasn't at all sorry.

Akaashi shoved the rest of his clothes into his case and zipped it up, figuring that it mostly all needed washing anyway and he stood up, taking Bokuto's hand and going back into the living room, sitting on the sofa.

He looked expectantly up at Bokuto and a grin spread across his face.

He sat down on the sofa next to Akaashi and pulled him into his arms.

'I miss you.' He said softly and Akaashi looked at him, confused.

'I'm right here, though.'

'I miss you already.' He rectified, pouting and Akaashi ran a hand through his hair.

'I miss you already too.' He reciprocated and Bokuto smiled, kissing him quickly.

'You do?'

'I do.'

'Really and truly?'

'Really and truly, Bokuto-san.' He laughed, and Bokuto held him tighter.

They stayed like that for a while, just laying with each other and holding each other and it was nice, Akaashi thought, and he should probably ask something about what this makes them but he just couldn't bring himself to say something that might shatter this moment; and he thought that a conversation like that, no matter the outcome probably would.

A good forty minutes and glances at the clock later, Akaashi sat up and looked sadly at Bokuto.

'We should get going to the station.'

'Yeah.' He replied and Akaashi went to retrieve his suitcase.

When he came back to the living room, Bokuto had gotten him a little bag of pieces of their gingerbread house in it and the little Bokuto.

'You can eat this on the train?' He said, handing him the bag. 'And I thought you could have this one too.' He said, seeming almost bashful as he handed Akaashi the little Bokuto.

'Thank you, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi said with a smile and took the bag from him.

It took slightly longer than usual to get to the station, mainly because Bokuto was dragging his feet and pretending to struggle with pulling Akaashi's suitcase though he'd managed just fine on the way.

In the end, Akaashi took both the suitcase and his hand and kissed him lightly on the cheek.

'I'll text you every day.' He said as they walked up the stairs to the platform. 'And I'll Skype you at least three times a week. And I will come and visit you again soon after Christmas.'

'Promise?'

'Promise.'

The train pulled in and Bokuto kissed Akaashi gently.

'I'll see you soon, yeah?' Akaashi said with a smile as he turned for the train.

'Yeah.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd love to know what you think!
> 
> Ps. IwaOi drama will be revealed in my IwaOi side along fic to this 'In this endeavour' which I'm currently in the process of writing c:


	3. Chapter 3

Akaashi took in a breath as the gym doors opened and five people walked in.

'Hey, hey, hey!' Bokuto said with a grin and Akaashi couldn't help smiling, though his brows furrowed into a slight frown.

'Bokuto-san.' He said softly as the second and third years crowded the graduates. 'You came to watch our match?'

He nodded eagerly. 'Then I thought we could get the train back together.'

'I would like that.'

They went to sit on some chairs at the side of the gym as the two teams were called to line up.

It was just a practice match, but that didn't stop the slight nervousness he felt, especially now Bokuto was watching; he knew they wouldn't be up to the standard of Bokuto's university team and he didn't want to disappoint him.

He glanced back to where Bokuto and the other old third years sat and Bokuto gave him a thumbs up with both hands.

They only played two sets, Fukurodani winning both 25-19 and 25-21 and after thanking the other school for coming, they retreated back to the club room to get changed and catch up with their old team mates.

Bokuto bounded over to Akaashi and kissed him quickly. 'Congratulations!' He said happily and Akaashi took a step backwards.

'Bokuto-san.' He said softly, looking down.

'When did that happen?' Konoha asked, smirking at them.

Akaashi glanced up and saw Saruki and Komi exchanging money.

He shrugged. 'Around a month ago I guess. But I mean… We're not…' He trailed off, chancing a glance at Bokuto who was biting his lip and unusually quiet.

'Dating?' He supplied and Akaashi nodded.

'Oh, so you're like, friends with benefits?' Washio asked curiously and Bokuto nodded.

'No! No, we're not!' Akaashi corrected him quickly. 'We're not like that.'

Washio shrugged. 'Okay.'

Akaashi gathered up his things and looked at the time quickly. 'We should get going, our train is soon.' He said and walked out quickly, letting out a shaky breath as he stopped, waiting for Bokuto to catch up with him.

'Are you okay, Akaashi?' Bokuto asked softly as they got onto the platform, Akaashi not having let Bokuto take his bag out of his hand to carry it for him.

Akaashi stopped and he looked at Bokuto. 'No. No, I'm not.'

Bokuto opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again, waiting for Akaashi to continue.

'That wasn't okay.' He said, and Bokuto looked down. 'We're not dating, you're not my boyfriend, and even if you were, what gave you the right to do that? To out me to everyone? The current team, the old team?'

'I didn't think-'

'That maybe I wasn't ready? That maybe not everybody is like you?'

'Are you ashamed?'

'No, I-' He exhaled. 'I'm not ashamed, it just isn't anyone's business and I'd rather tell people in my own time.'

'I'm sorry, Akaashi, I-'

'It's okay.' Akaashi said, seeing Bokuto's eyes fill with tears as the train pulled up.

'I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to make you angry or upset, I promise, I was just really happy to see you and you won and-'

'Bokuto-san,' Akaashi said, taking his hand and pulling him onto the train.

'I was just being stupid, as usual…'

'Don't say that.' He said, sitting down and finding it rather surprising how empty the train was. 'You are not stupid.'

'I made you sad, Akaashi, I'm so sorry, I wanted to take you out to dinner tonight and everything, but if you just want to go home I understand.'

Akaashi squeezed Bokuto's hand gently. 'I would like to go to dinner with you, Bokuto-san.' He said and Bokuto sighed in relief.

'I'm sorry.'

'I forgive you.' He said and kissed Bokuto's forehead, pulling him in for a hug and when Bokuto sat back, Akaashi caught a tear on his thumb as he swiped it gently under his eye. 'Please don't cry.'

'I'm sorry.'

'Stop apologising.'

'I'm-'

'Bokuto-san.'

Bokuto laughed a little and sniffed, wiping his nose on the corner of his sleeve.

Akaashi didn't let go of Bokuto's hand on the train journey, and not when they walked home either, when they got into Bokuto's apartment, Akaashi put his bag down and immediately wrapped his arms around Bokuto, still feeling incredibly guilty for making him cry.

He leant up and kissed him gently.

'I'm sorry.' Akaashi said with a soft smile and kissed him again.

'I forgive you.' Bokuto replied against Akaashi's lips.

They changed clothes (and kissed some more) and then made their way to the restaurant. It was the same one as before, and though it didn't have as many lights from the assortment of Christmas decorations that they had had up before, it was still just as beautiful inside and the food just as nice.

Akaashi held onto Bokuto's arm on the way back and kissed him on the cheek.

'Thank you for tonight.' He said gently.

'I really am sorry about earlier, you know.'

'It's all forgotten and forgiven. I promise.' He said, stopping walking to kiss Bokuto softly.

'I missed you, Akaashi.' Bokuto said, putting an arm around Akaashi's waist as they continued walking and approached Bokuto's apartment block.

'I missed you too.' Akaashi replied as Bokuto held the door open for him.

'We should put a film on.' Bokuto said, unlocking his front door and Akaashi nodded, going straight to sit on the sofa.

'You can pick.' He smiled and waited for Bokuto to set the movie up.

He decided on an action movie and Akaashi smiled fondly at him as he sat up on the sofa next to him and Akaashi curled into his side.

'Are you going to take another picture when I inevitably fall asleep?' Akaashi asked with a sleepy smile, looking up at him.

'Would you like me to?' Bokuto asked and Akaashi laughed softly, not entirely sure whether he nodded or shook his head as he rested his head back on Bokuto's chest and letting his eyes fall closed.

Akaashi wasn't sure when he fell asleep, but he couldn't have heard more than ten minutes of the film.

'We should go to bed.' Bokuto said, kissing Akaashi's forehead.

Akaashi nodded sleepily and stood up, holding his hand out to Bokuto who took it and stood up with him.

'Ah.' Bokuto said as they went to his bedroom. 'I was in such a rush to leave, I forgot to set up the futon.'

'It's okay.' Akaashi said sleepily and pulled his trousers off, and climbed into Bokuto's bed. 'I don't mind, I'm too tired to care.'

'Okay.' Bokuto said with a smile and joined him, wrapping an arm around his waist and holding him close.

*** 

Akaashi rubbed at his wet hair with a towel as he put one of Bokuto's jumpers on that he'd said he could borrow when they woke up and the temperature had dropped by seven degrees.

Bokuto's room was still as untidy as before and Akaashi smiled fondly at the mess around him, picking some clothes up off of the floor like he had done before and putting them in the laundry basket in the corner of Bokuto's bedroom.

Bokuto's desk had managed to become worse than when Akaashi had tidied it the time before, and Akaashi picked up the mess of papers, patting them into a neat pile and stacked Bokuto's text books on top of one another and his eyes fell on a photo frame.

It was one that had four separate frames, all attached by hinges and could fold in on itself for storage. In each frame was one of the four pictures that they had taken last time Akaashi had visited, before they had decorated the gingerbread house and Akaashi had kissed Bokuto.

He sat down on the bed, the photos in his hands and he looked at them; he'd never actually even seen these pictures before, he'd half forgotten that they'd been taken in the first place.

'We took those so that I could put them up, remember?' Bokuto said, coming into the bedroom and sitting beside Akaashi on the bed.

Akaashi looked up at him and Bokuto looked worried, chewing his lip and looking at the pictures, as if he was scared that Akaashi wouldn't like that he'd printed them out or that he'd be mad.

'Yeah, I remember.' Akaashi said with a soft smile. 'They were hidden under all of your papers on your desk.'

'You don't have to tidy up for me every time you come over.' He said, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment.

'I don't mind, it's okay.' Akaashi assured him and put the frame back on Bokuto's desk where the papers no longer hid it.

'We should do something today.' Bokuto said, changing the subject and Akaashi turned to him.

'Like what?'

'Oikawa told me about this wildlife place he took Iwaizumi to the other week.' He said.

'I can imagine Iwaizumi-san enjoyed that.' Akaashi laughed lightly.

'Apparently he did, but you can't take Oikawa's word for it.' Bokuto replied.

'We could do that, it sounds fun.' Akaashi said and Bokuto grinned.

'Really? Okay!'

They quickly ate breakfast and looked up the train time table, deciding to go before lunch so that they would have time for volleyball when they got back.

The train was rather crowded, so they didn't get to sit down until they were just a stop away, but Bokuto was brimming with excitement and Akaashi couldn't help but pick some of it up off of him, listening to Bokuto giddily tell him about all the animals he wanted to see.

There weren't too many people there once they got there, probably due to the cold temperature and for that Akaashi was glad as they managed not to bash into anyone as Bokuto happily dragged him by the hand around the place, taking pictures of the otters and ferrets and standing in front of the enclosure of deer, trying to get a selfie with Akaashi and have the deer in the background.

Akaashi barely managed to convince Bokuto to stop for lunch but they'd bought a couple of snacks from the coffee shop inside and had sat down by the little lake outside at one of the picnic benches, completely alone as the other people that were there had decided to sit inside in the warmth.

'We can go inside if you're cold, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi said softly as Bokuto pulled his coat further around himself.

'I like it out here though.' Bokuto smiled. 'We're getting the full wildlife experience!'

Akaashi laughed softly as Bokuto brushed a tiny spider off of the table. 'Okay then.'

They chatted for a bit after they'd finished eating, or rather, Bokuto talked animatedly about the animals they'd seen and Akaashi listened, adding in a comment or two where appropriate.

'Let's go to the gift shop!' Bokuto said happily, standing up and putting their rubbish into a nearby bin and grabbed Akaashi's hand, leading him in where he supposed was the general direction of the gift shop.

They looked around at everything, playing a sort of game of making each other guess the prices of things (to which they were never too far off because everything was horrendously overpriced).

'I'm going to buy you a present, Akaashi!' Bokuto announced with a grin.

'You don't have to do that, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi said with a slight frown.

'I want to!'

'Everything here is so expensive and you already paid for everything…' Akaashi countered.

'I'm not giving you a choice!' Bokuto said, pecking Akaashi on the nose and shoving him towards the other side of the store.

Akaashi rolled his eyes and glanced over his shoulder, smiling gently as he watched Bokuto picking up all of the soft toys and examining them.

Once Bokuto went over to the counter, he went over to where Bokuto had been and picked up a few of the smaller soft toys, tilting his head in thought and looking at the price tags.

He settled on a small brown owl that was labelled as 'Tawny Owl' and he glanced over at Bokuto who (now carrying a gift bag) was now looking at the collection of mugs in the corner and Akaashi rolled his eyes fondly, going over to pay for the toy.

'We should get going if you want to play some volleyball later.' Akaashi said, taking Bokuto's hand and leading him out of the gift shop.

Bokuto's eyes lit up. 'Will you toss for me, Akaashi? Will you?'

Akaashi laughed gently. 'No, Bokuto-san, we are going to play volleyball and I am not going to toss for you.'

Bokuto pouted. 'Akaashiiiii, you don't need to say it like thatttt.' He whined and Akaashi flicked his forehead.

'Yes, I would love to toss for you, Bokuto-san.'

Bokuto pumped his fist into the air and laughed, pulling Akaashi towards the exit and Akaashi struggled to keep up with Bokuto's fast pace, tripping suddenly and bashing into Bokuto.

'Are you okay, Akaashi?' Bokuto asked worriedly, helping him up and hurriedly brushing dirt off of him.

'I'm fine, Bokuto-san.' Akaashi assured him, taking his hand again and pulling him gently towards the exit. 'We don't need to hurry, we have time.'

Bokuto was restless as they got onto the train and Akaashi rested his head on his shoulder, sighing.

'Bokuto-san, please stop fidgeting.' He said gently and Bokuto stilled for a moment.

He quickly started tapping his foot again and Akaashi sat up, putting his hands on either side of Bokuto's face and rested his forehead against his.

'Only a few more minutes, okay? I know you really want to play volleyball again with me, I do too, just take a deep breath.'

Bokuto nodded and managed to sit still for the rest of their journey with Akaashi's gentle praise and he managed to stop himself from excitedly pulling Akaashi into the university and straight to the court, and Akaashi signed them in, getting a visitor badge and they made their way down to the gym and Akaashi was relieved to find it empty.

Bokuto quickly retrieved a volleyball and threw it up in Akaashi's direction, Akaashi tossed it up and Bokuto forcefully spiked it over the net.

'Did I do well, Akaashi?' Bokuto asked eagerly, bounding up close to Akaashi and Akaashi laughed gently.

'You did well, Bokuto-san. Throw it up again for me then.'

Toss after toss and spike after spike Bokuto rushed over to Akaashi and asked for confirmation that he'd spiked it well and Akaashi was starting to get a little worried.

'Bokuto-san?' Akaashi said, catching the ball in his hands rather than tossing it when Bokuto threw it up.

'Everything okay, Akaashi?' Bokuto asked, coming back over to him.

'Are you settled in okay with your team, Bokuto-san?' Akaashi asked softly and Bokuto tilted his head slightly.

'Yeah, I think so.'

'They're not giving you a hard time or anything?'

Bokuto hummed and shook his head.

Akaashi nodded and threw the ball at Bokuto for him to throw back so he could toss it.

'Did I do good, Akaashi?' Bokuto asked as the ball hit the ground with a resounding thud.

'You know you did well, Bokuto-san. You know you did great. You know that you're a great player, what is this about?'

Bokuto rubbed the back of his neck. 'I want you to toss for me forever, Akaashi.' Bokuto said softly, walking over to Akaashi.

'I'll toss for you for however long you want me to.' Akaashi replied with a smile.

'I'm worried we're going to get out of sync with each other.'

'Why are you worried about that?'

'Our setter, he isn't like you, he's different. He tosses to me different and I've been changing the way I spike to fit with him and I don't want it to be wrong when you toss for me.'

Akaashi smiled gently and rested a hand on Bokuto's cheek.

'Don't worry about us, Bokuto-san, we'll be just fine. You shouldn't be changing yourself too much to fit with your team, you should all be able to come together. They're so lucky to have you on their team, Bokuto-san, you're incredible.'

Bokuto's eyes were wide and shiny and for a moment Akaashi was worried that he might start to cry, but he pressed his lips quickly against Akaashi's, putting an arm around his waist and holding him close.

'You want to get a take out tonight?' Bokuto asked softly, pulling away and resting his forehead against Akaashi's.

'I'd like that.'

'Do we have time for a few more tosses?' Bokuto asked hopefully and Akaashi let out a gentle laugh.

'We should have enough time.'

The door suddenly swung open and Akaashi and Bokuto jumped apart from each other quickly, flushed and eyes wide as they looked to who had come in through the door; Akaashi recognised them as the two from when he'd visited the first time and he frowned at their luck – out of the entire team.

'Well if it isn't Bokuto's pretty little setter!' The university team's setter said with a smirk and the teams Captain slapped him across the head.

'Mikora that hurt!' He whined and Mikora laughed.

'It's good to see you again, Akaashi, right?' He asked and Akaashi nodded.

'We should be getting back if we want to get dinner on the way.' Akaashi said softly to Bokuto and Bokuto nodded.

'Okay.' He replied with a smile and took Akaashi's hand in his. 'Sorry we couldn't stay, Akaashi and I have to pick up dinner on the way back.' He said with a smile. 'See you guys on Monday.'

He waved as they left and they walked towards the entrance of the university and Akaashi dropped off the visitor badge he'd had and they walked down the street.

'Do you not like them?' Bokuto asked as they walked towards the take out shop they'd decided on.

'I don't not like them.' Akaashi said, smiling softly as Bokuto swung their hands between them.

'Okay.' Bokuto said and Akaashi was grateful that he wasn't pressuring him; he wasn't sure what it was really, whether he perhaps felt intimidated by them or just uncomfortable.

They paid for their food and waited a few minutes before collecting it and walking home.

They were both pretty exhausted from their day as they curled up on the sofa, almost clean plates on the coffee table in front of it and Akaashi's head rested on Bokuto's chest.

'Hey, Bokuto-san?' Akaashi said softly, looking up at him and Bokuto smiled down at him.

'Yeah?'

'I want to be your boyfriend.' He said with a gentle smile and he watched as Bokuto smiled widely.

'You do?' He asked, voice full of something that sounded like a mixture of affection and hope.

'I really do.'

'I would really like that, Akaashi.' Bokuto said and Akaashi laughed softly, leaning up to kiss him, and looping an arm lazily around his neck.

'Let's go to bed.' Bokuto said quietly and Akaashi nodded, standing up and extending a hand to Bokuto.

They walked into the bedroom and changed into pyjamas, and then went to brush their teeth. When they got back into the bedroom, Bokuto handed Akaashi a bag.

'Your present.' Bokuto said eagerly as Akaashi took out a large snowy owl soft toy as he laughed gently, going to retrieve his own bag he handed it to Bokuto and he took out the little brown owl.

'Wow! What are the chances we both picked out owls?' He asked happily as he nuzzled the small toy.

Akaashi had chosen the owl because he knew how much Bokuto loved them, and he supposed that subconsciously Bokuto must have done the same. Akaashi didn't mind though because while owls weren't his favourite, they did remind him of Bokuto

Akaashi pulled back the covers and got into Bokuto's bed, moving over so that Bokuto could slide in beside him and pull the covers back over him.

'Goodnight, boyfriend.' Bokuto said and Akaashi could hear the grin in the dark as he held Akaashi close.

'Goodnight, boyfriend.' Akaashi replied with a gentle smile and held tight to Bokuto's arms around him.

'I hope you have really great dreams.' Bokuto said pressing a kiss to the back of Akaashi's head.

Akaashi laughed sleepily. 'Thank you, Bokuto-san. You too.' He replied.

It wasn't long before Akaashi knew Bokuto was asleep from his light steady breathing and he opened his eyes, looking around the room and not feeling tired anymore, a strange warmth in his chest, and then he let his eyes fall closed again.

*** 

The air was cold when Akaashi awoke, and he snuggled further down under the covers, closer to the warmth next to him that he momentarily remembered to be Bokuto.

He opened his eyes and blinked slowly, leaning up to kiss Bokuto's cheek gently, letting his lips linger as Bokuto's eyes opened.

'Morning, Akaashi!' Bokuto said with a smile, kissing him quickly on the lips. 'How did you sleep?'

'Well, thank you. And yourself?'

Bokuto nodded. 'I slept really well! You're nice to cuddle.' He said and Akaashi flushed. 'You're so cute, Akaashi, you blush at the slightest thing.' He cooed, kissing his nose.

Akaashi huffed. 'You on the other hand, never blush at all.'

'Aw, I'm sorry, Akaashi.' He said and Akaashi kissed him again, before getting up out of bed, rubbing his arms in the cold and wishing he'd packed long sleeved pyjamas.

'I'm going to make us a coffee.' Akaashi said with a soft smile, slipping Bokuto's slippers onto his feet and walking out of the door.

'Love you!' Bokuto called after him and Akaashi stopped. He could feel his heart rate increasing and he wondered if Bokuto even realised that he'd said that.

He walked back to the bedroom and stood in the door way.

'Everything okay?' Bokuto asked, looking up.

Akaashi nodded wordlessly. 'Yeah.' He said, wetting his lips and turning on his heel and going into the kitchen.

He boiled the kettle and got two mugs out, so immersed in his own thoughts that he didn't hear Bokuto come into the kitchen and gave a start when Bokuto draped his dressing gown over Akaashi's shoulders.

'Bokuto-san,' Akaashi said, pouring milk into their coffees. 'Won't you be cold?' He asked and felt Bokuto gently kissing up the side of his neck until his lips rested on the shell of his ear.

'Don't you think it's time you stopped calling me Bokuto-san?' He asked softly, his hot breath making Akaashi shiver and though he knew Bokuto was most likely referring to the 'san' that he always added to his name, he felt brave this morning and turned around against the counter until he was facing Bokuto and rested their foreheads together.

'Would you like me to call you Koutarou?' He asked softly and saw Bokuto's eyes widen momentarily before he smiled and kissed him.

'I would like that a lot.' Bokuto said and Akaashi smiled.

'You would like that a lot, what?'

'I would like that a lot, Keiji.' He said with a grin and Akaashi pecked his lips again, turning around to stir the coffee as Bokuto peppered kisses over his cheek and wrapped his arms around Akaashi's waist.

This was what made it worth it, Akaashi thought, all the distance and the 'I miss you's and hardly seeing each other. All the good morning texts and the 'how has your day been?'s and the late night Skype calls and reminding Bokuto to do his homework and get a good night's rest. Right here, right now in this small apartment kitchen in Bokuto's dressing gown and slippers is what made that all worth it and Akaashi smiled to himself, picking up the coffee cups and handing one to Bokuto.

'Let's go back to bed.' He said gently, taking Bokuto's free hand in his and walking back to the bedroom, clambering back into the warmth of the duvet and sitting close to Bokuto, sipping at his coffee.

'Koutarou?' Akaashi asked and he watched as a smile broke out on Bokuto's face.

'Yeah, Keiji?' He replied and Akaashi couldn't help but smile too.

'I love you.' He said and Bokuto kissed him, nearly spilling both of their coffees in the process. 'Hey, careful.' He said, putting his coffee down on the bedside table and taking Bokuto's from him.

'But Keiji,' Bokuto grinned, 'you love me!' He said and threw his arms around Akaashi, kissing him and kissing him until Akaashi was giggling.

'I really do.' He said with a smile and pecked Bokuto on the nose.

'And guess what?' Bokuto said excitedly.

'What, Koutarou?'

'I really love you a lot too!' He exclaimed and Akaashi smiled.

'I know.'

**Author's Note:**

> a/n id really love to know what you think ive spent so many hours doing this at school and kms
> 
> keep an eye out for my iwaoi coming soon in the same universe ^.^
> 
> Ps. Charlotte says she is crying because shes been watching me do this for so long and its finally over and she's never seen haikyuu but she loves this xD


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